Origin

A number of English words comes from Latin arcus ‘a bow, arch, or curve’, among them arc, arcade (late 17th century), and arch (Middle English). Arc was originally a term for the path of the sun or other celestial objects from horizon to horizon. Given the shape of a bow for shooting arrows, it should not be surprising that archer (Middle English) has the same Latin source. Another meaning of arch, ‘chief or principal’ (as in archbishop (Old English) or arch-enemy (mid 16th century)), has a different origin, coming from Greek arkhos ‘a chief or ruler’. This Greek word can also be seen in anarchy (mid 16th century), which literally means ‘the state of having no ruler’, in architect (mid 16th century) from archi and tektōn ‘builder’, and archipelago (early 16th century) from archi and pelagos ‘sea’. This was originally used as a proper name for the Aegean Sea; the general sense ‘group of islands’ arose because the Aegean Sea is remarkable for its large numbers of islands.

Origin

A number of English words comes from Latin arcus ‘a bow, arch, or curve’, among them arc, arcade (late 17th century), and arch (Middle English). Arc was originally a term for the path of the sun or other celestial objects from horizon to horizon. Given the shape of a bow for shooting arrows, it should not be surprising that archer (Middle English) has the same Latin source. Another meaning of arch, ‘chief or principal’ (as in archbishop (Old English) or arch-enemy (mid 16th century)), has a different origin, coming from Greek arkhos ‘a chief or ruler’. This Greek word can also be seen in anarchy (mid 16th century), which literally means ‘the state of having no ruler’, in architect (mid 16th century) from archi and tektōn ‘builder’, and archipelago (early 16th century) from archi and pelagos ‘sea’. This was originally used as a proper name for the Aegean Sea; the general sense ‘group of islands’ arose because the Aegean Sea is remarkable for its large numbers of islands.